RangersIn7

7 minutes ago, siddious said:

 

Im gladly eating shit right now. Now go improve on this. 

That’s coming too.

The finishing skills will only improve.

And it’s hopeful I think he gets more PP time too. 

49 minutes ago, Long live the King said:

 

GG constantly shuffled the lines.  Never gave Laf any time to work through a slump.  Lavi left him there all year regardless.  Laf a stretch from about Thanksgiving to February where he only had 3 goals in 31 games.  Lavi didn't waver.   Outside of that stretch Laf paced nearly 40 goals per 82.  Hope Drury can lock him up this season before Laf finds more consistency next year.

All fair.

Ive never been a huge fan of shuffling lines if you’re not going to let them sit for a while.

15 minutes ago, Br4d said:

Also, Panarin.

 

I mean seriously this is probably the #1 guy in the NHL that you want to put a young offensive star in waiting with.

Yeah. 
But moving him to RW prior, I completely understand why they didn’t do it.

Rookie year, abbreviated schedule, you leave him at LW, behind CK and Panarin and see what happens.

Next season, new HC, you put him with the other 2 kids as a 3rd line, keep the pressure off them, he stays at his natural position and they did ok, and had sone really nice and encouraging moments in the playoffs.

 
Last season, off of that prior season and playoff run, he left that line together and it was justified. 

Though GG probably should’ve bump him up earlier and for longer looks, it’s whatever.

He was ready this season and Lavy did it and it’s worked. 

36 minutes ago, Pete said:

I don't know that Ros has really earned anything. Chytil's shooting mentality is desperately needed on that line.

Ros has been fine. But just that.

Fine. 
If he’s out of the lineup, it doesn’t hurt if you’re putting Chytil in in his place. Speed is the same. And Chytil gives you more overall offensively. 

It’s also really damn hard to jump into the NHL at 19 and succeed to a high level quickly.

 
We look at guys who do, and forget how many guys just don’t. Because they can’t. 
Too much emphasis and expectations get placed there too soon.

 
Through in all the other circumstances we’ve all mentioned over the previous 3 seasons and it’s not only easy to see why it took the time it did, but it’s very understandable. 
 

Kakko is coming too. Just gotta maintain course and the patience. 

Just now, Pete said:

Yep. I put a little more onus on the player because I don't really entirely buy they "he had to grow into his body and this change couldn't have happened sooner" stuff, but I'm not saying it's impossible. I'm just skeptical that's all it was.

That’s fair.

I don’t think it was an effort thing though.

 He’s had a strength coach since he hit puberty. Clearly he takes it seriously. 
 

I think the issue just didn’t get pinpointed earlier. That’s a part too. Who knows why? 

He needed that to get a program to correct and improve that specific issue.

My overall point is that he wasn’t ready to take the step till the last 12 months.

Brian Boyle said the same last week or week before.

He just wasn’t at the point where he could make that jump.

 Physical. Mental. Emotional. Maturity. Just knowing what to do and how. 
Probably a combination. And he needed stuff he wasn’t getting prior.

Your steak isn’t cooked the way you want it cooked until it is. 
 

A player is ready when he’s ready.

I think the shift to shift issues reflect a player lacking confidence and playing a way he’s not supposed to really play.

13 minutes ago, Pete said:

I mean, that's fine but this guy looked out of shape and was always huffing and puffing. He's definitely leaner this year, but an efficient stride where he is getting from point A to B with less energy means he's less gassed. It's all related.

 

His bad attitude, maybe he just didn't like the coach, and now he does.

Yeah it’s tied in together.

I don’t think he looked out of shape, nor gassed all that much.

I think guys fill out and grow into their frame and get stronger naturally at that age and that’s a big part of things.

Your capacity for conditioning and building muscle really increases in those few years.

I think he was unhappy, feeling stifled, and lost under Gallant.

Not so much bad attitude. But not really having the success he was used to and feeling pressure, and not really getting anything in the way of guidance or help to fix it. 
 

I guess we’re saying similar things just doing so differently. 

43 minutes ago, Pete said:

Lavvy says anyone in a contact jersey is ready to play, but are they really doing this kid any favors by putting him right back into the playoff mix after missi ng the season?

 

What I will say is that if there's a team to get him in there against, it's a slow one like they Caps.

 

And if he's in a top 6 jersey I have to believe his on RW for Roslovic.

He should play in the series. Maybe not right off the rip.

And maybe not on Zib line. 
 

Ease him in as much as you can. 

43 minutes ago, BrooksBurner said:

You’re right when you say it’s not all on him.

But it’s clear he not only didn’t do enough. And what’s worse is that he wasn’t even concerned or cognizant enough to try.

And the argument about softness, physicality, north/south play, or whatever you wanna call it is BS too.

That’s apparently what he was telling them and what he wanted and what they were trying to do and it didn’t work. 
 

It’s not entirely on him and I posted in the last couple of days that I think overall he did well.

But he didn’t do enough 

And ultimately he lost the room because of that and his players knew it. 

2 hours ago, Pete said:

Breaking down his skating stride and getting him stronger on his edges is something they specifically did this summer, but that could have been done at any point. You don't need to be 22 years old to do that. 

That’s fair.

The strength building part in his legs though…

I think that’s why the comments/rumblings we heard last summer regarding his offseason program.

Not that he wasn’t working or working hard enough.

But specifically what he was working on and how.

Which is exactly what I said last summer when everyone was shitting down his throat, calling him a lazy, fat ass, donut boy bust with a bad attitude.

Just now, Pete said:

I don't think it's an "either or situation". 

 

Yes, he put in a tremendous amount of work to get better, but why did he wait 3 years to do it? There's an argument to be made that it's because a new coach was coming in. Maybe he didn't see the point in working hard to be relegated to the third line with no power play time and just being told to chip pucks in.

 

He likely had some conversations with Lavvy that spurred a desire to work on things over this particular summer that have been a problem since day one. 

He didn’t wait 3 years to do it though. That’s a misrepresentation.

Hes always worked hard by all accounts. He needed the time and growth and physical development that comes with going from age 18-19 to age 21-22.

2 minutes ago, Valriera said:

Gallant was a shitty coach like we all know but Lafreniere’s growth this season is because he put in obvious immense off season work to his skating and everything else is secondary. If he was the same player when Gallant was here, we’d know. Don’t take away the kid’s credit for putting in the work by placing the blame for him on Gallant. GG had a lot of flaws but Lafreniere outright sucked donkey dick his first few seasons, worked ridiculously hard on the off season, and earned his progress this year. He didn’t deserve any looks on the powerplay or the top line, he was that bad. This year, it’s only the way it is bc our PP is the best in the league. He’s made it hard because of him, not the coach 

Yeah.

There is a significant bit of it that Laf needed to do on his own.

Brian Boyle made a good point on this a couple weeks back on his podcast. We questioned his attitude and work ethic. We were wrong about that though.

The kid just wasn’t ready yet and didn’t have the physical capacity to make those strides yet. 

3 minutes ago, Sharpshooter said:

Yeah, Laf, as a first overall pick, came into a situation that most first overalls don't come in to, a team ready to contend. His growth was stunted a bit because of that. This year? Absolutely tremendous strides. The fact he did what he did without really much PP time is pretty incredible. I don't see how Lav doesn't re-evaluate that for next season. Get him some time on the top unit and see what he does.

Yeah.

As we’ve all stated many time, that 1OVA typically goes to a terrible team and can immediately play top-6 minutes, top PP unit, play with that teams best players, and be allowed to just play, make mistakes, learn, and grow. 
 

Laf came into a team that was an also-ran team, but not an awful one, and got none of that. And it hurt him. 

4 minutes ago, Morphinity 2.0 said:

Yeah, a lot of it is pointing out how many more puck touches Lafreniere is getting vs. his previous years. And he credits that to a) playing with Panarin and b) getting more leash from his coaches.

 

I don't completely blame Gallant. As they said in the beginning of the video, he's a kid coming onto a team trying to win right away with a logjam at LW ahead of him. So he's already behind the 8-ball in terms of optimal development for an elite talent. Some of it falls on Quinn's and Gallant's coaching style for sure, but I'm not sure how another coach would have squeezed even more out of him early in his career. 

Well they were never going to gift him minutes. And he was always going to be stuck behind CK and Panarin, because they weren’t going to move him in his first season, and probably his second season either.

I don’t put much if any on Quinn.

But they needed to move him to RW and up his minutes last year and they didn’t.

Thats totally on Gallant. 

It was a decent watch.

But it’s nearly 30 years ago, and quite honestly it’s not that interesting a story to begin with. And ESPN dramatizes this shot beyond belief. 
 

Colorado was going to figure it out someway. I firmly believe that. 

1 hour ago, The Dude said:

You'd think it would result in penalties.  It doesn't seem to matter  when it's the Rangers and  the playoffs.  Retaliation penalties seem to be what refs like to call. So, maybe the plan should be to hit them first.  Set the pace.  Let them react. 

I’m saying in relation to the Caps “crossing the line” as you said.

If they do, they’re calling penalties. 

1 hour ago, Pete said:

And who stunk for them in the playoffs and first half of this season. 

I never understood the deal for him.

The price they paid to acquire him essentially made it impossible for them not to extend him. You get a rental at that price, you have to keep him long-term. 

But it isn’t like they needed him.

4th highest scoring team in the league. 

They were already loaded up front with plenty of offense and depth.

On 4/10/2024 at 11:07 AM, RichieNextel305 said:

It’s a small, fast, talented, soft, immature team. Their defense was weakened by Hamilton being gone. But does he fix everything? They probably do get a goalie, which will help. Hughes has been someone who tends to get injured quite a bit. I can’t believe things imploded this big this fast there. But, as others have said in this thread, what a shame…

The Hamilton injury hurt them for sure.

But before that… they let Graves go and traded Severson and replaced them with 2 kids that are offensive defensemen.

All for the purpose of keeping Timo Meier, whom they didn’t really need.

11 minutes ago, The Dude said:

Washington knows how to push the Rangers buttons. Wilson, Dowdy, Ovechkin and Oshie will be walking the line and hitting everyone in sight. Heck, they dressed Mcllrath in their last game (he owned Rempe in the A).. They can and will play ragged and go over the line. If the Rangers can play through that, it's a piece of cake. I think they can .

 

With that said, Zibanejad and Panarin really need to play with their heads up and eyes on the back of their heads, but also take it to them and act like they like it. Don't back down. Don't let old men Oshie and Ovie knock you down a peg. 

Agree with this

Though that likely results in Washington taking penalties and if they do that, the Rangers will kill them.

Even matching minors hurts them. 

24 minutes ago, Albatrosss said:

Fla vs TB should be exciting.  Hopefully they injure the shit out of each other

I’m hoping that the building collapses during Canes-Isles

5 minutes ago, RichieNextel305 said:

I’m not saying this *will* be a cakewalk. For sure, the Capitals can play a frustrating brand of hockey and pressure the Rangers and frustrate them through the neutral zone especially.

 

But the problems Washington presents are a pin prick compared to the ones we present to them. That’s all I meant, really.

I 100% agree.

I wouldnt be running to play the Rangers or for that matter, any other team that finishes 1st in the league in a playoff series ever. 

Just now, RichieNextel305 said:

That’s looking at it from one angle, and that’s at the Caps. Look at it from theirs. Their one strength right now is arguably Lindgren. And he’s, at the very least, going to be matched by Shesterkin. The Rangers score more, defend better, have a better coach, have more depth, have better special teams.

 

Rarely do you see a series that can be a walk in the park. But if this one isn’t for the Rangers, even as good as Lindgren is playing right now, then we don’t deserve to have any expectations.

Even in more 1 sided series there are rarely easy games.

And the Caps do present some challenges.

Nevertheless, they should beat this team and not need many games to do it. 

43 minutes ago, Pete said:

This is true.

 

Frankly, I wouldn't be shocked to see xGF% fall to the wayside as a team stat that anyone cares about, similar to Corsi and Fenwick. First of all, it's too subjective, and secondly, as we discussed—an expected goal doesn't always materialize for some players the way it might for others (MacKinnon vs Kakko as stated).

I may be wrong about this, but if it’s anything like baseball, and their analytic stats and metrics, I believe that many sites as well as teams have their own proprietary way of calculating them.

Many similarities but some significant differences too.

Again… might be wrong.

37 minutes ago, BrooksBurner said:

Yeah well I’d argue that it was just production normalizing up to meet expectation.

 

In either case, it’s silly to use OTL as an indicator of…really anything.

That’s entirely possible.

I just don’t get too hung up on analytics.

They fill in a picture, they don’t paint one on their own.

 
My point I guess is that winning or losing a lot of games in gimmick OT or a shootout can be misleading.

Look At that Panthers team 2 years ago. They won 16 games in OT and SO.

Thats not sustainable in the playoffs when those rules go away.